Russia-based TMK, one of the world's leading producers of tubular products for the oil and gas industry, has stated that it has carried out a shipment of seamless line pipes for an offshore mining project in Papua New Guinea. The product will be utilized in the Solwara 1 project of Nautilus Minerals Inc. aimed at extracting seafloor massive sulphide (SMS) deposits in the Bismarck Sea, north of Papua New Guinea.
The pipes were produced at Volzhsky Pipe Plant, which is part of TMK. The plant has become the first qualified Russian mill licensed to produce high-grade API 5L X80QO seamless line pipe in accordance with API Spec. 5L/ISO 3183 for manufacturing of deep-water risers. The pipes were shipped to General Marine Contractors, LLC of Houston, Texas for welding and assembly into the completed riser system.
Toronto- and London-listed Nautilus Minerals, Inc. is a pioneer of SMS deposit exploration and production. Developed by Nautilus Minerals, the Solwara 1 project requires extraction of raw materials from the seafloor at a depth of 1,600 meters. The project is the first of its kind in the world.